Fifty Shades of Mystery
by xxEmilyy
Summary: SIP exists as Grey Publishing. Christian and Ana do not meet until her first day at GP. What will become of them?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I do not own the characters or any names from the _Fifty Shades _trilogy. All rights belong to E L James. Enjoy! **

* * *

It was my first day at Grey Publishing and I was excited. I just graduated from WSU and I just moved to Seattle with my best friend and roommate, Kate. I graduated with an English degree and I'm ready for work.

I was offered a job as assistant editor to a man named Jack Hyde.

When I came in for my interview, he seemed really nice and well spoken, I guess. He was accompanied by another Grey employee, Elizabeth Morgan. I was hired almost on the spot. When I got home after my interview, I was nearly bouncing off the walls; Kate had to hold me still.

I walked into the building and headed through reception and into an into a large work area that hosted a lot of cubicles. Everything was up to date. My cubicle was just outside Jack's office, so it would be easier to keep up with him.

"Ana!" I turned to see Jack walking through the door from reception. He came up and hugged me quickly. _Um…_

"Good to see you. Are you ready for your first day?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

He smiled. "Great. Well, I have a meeting in about ten minutes, so I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

My eyes went wide with excitement.

"Yes, that would be wonderful, Jack. Thank you," I say excited.

I followed Jack and Elizabeth into one of the buildings many meeting rooms. Jack sat near one of the ends of the long wooden table.

"Sit here, Ana," he said motioning to an empty chair on his left, while Elizabeth sat on his right. I took the chair and took a deep breath. Before I came in here with the others, I asked if I needed to prepare anything or take any notes down. Of course I didn't have to, but it wouldn't hurt. I pulled out a pen and my notebook as we waited for the CEO to join us. Apparently this was a monthly thing for all editors. Senior management would call a meeting for new strategic and marketing ideas for the company alone instead of just the authors we published.

After a few minutes of talking amongst ourselves, the door to the meeting room opened and we all stopped to see a tall man with dark copper-colored hair, molten gray eyes, and wearing a dark navy suit with a matching tie walk in. He was so young; I would have guessed the CEO to be in his or her sixties. He was beautiful. He was followed in by a man with a buzz cut and a sharp black suit. He moved to stand in the corner of the room closest to the door, his eyes not leaving Mr. Copper Hair.

"Sorry I'm late, everyone. I had a phone call that just couldn't hold." He sat down at the end of the table closest to me. I have never seen a man so handsome in my life, I was sure it was illegal. It must have been since his looks were enough to stop traffic or cause some kind of accident.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met," he says to me. My heart stops when he smiles at me.

"I'm…" words fail me. _Damn it, Ana, get it together! He's just another human being._

"This is, Anastasia Steele." Jack saves me. He turns back to me with a reassuring smile. I smile back to thank him.

"Welcome, Anastasia. I'm Christian Grey." He puts his hand out and I reach out and shake it. And when we do, I feel an electric current pass through me, as if I've been mildly electrocuted. I take my hand back, but he's still staring me, his gray eyes meeting my blue ones. They were so intense it almost felt impossible to look away.

"So," Jack says to break our gaze. "What's the news this month, Mr. Grey?"

Grey looks down at his files.

"Well…"

"So how was your first meeting, Ana?" Jack asks me when I get back to my desk. He crosses his arms across his chest and leans on my desk a little too close for comfort. _Um, a little too close there, bud._

"Ideal." I joke.

He smiles, but it doesn't quite meet his eyes.

"Yeah, that's normal. I can see Grey likes you."

My eyes go wide. "Well, I should hope so."

"I don't think you need to. He couldn't keep his eyes off of you." He says displeased. I look down at my desk and turn on my computer. I set about getting to work knowing full well that Jack is still beside me, but I take it that if I focus long enough, he'll go away so I can get my mind off this awkwardness.

When Jack finally retreats to his office, I let out deep breath.

My desk phone rings.

"Grey Publishing, Anastasia Steele speaking."

"Ms. Steele, hello," Grey's voice comes from the other end. My heart stops.

"M-Mr. Grey, hello. How can I help you?" I take a deep breath and let it out quietly so he doesn't hear that he slightly intimidates me.

"I was wondering if I could speak to you in private for a moment. So I can get to know my new employee better, of course." I can almost hear the smirk in his voice.

"Of course, I'll be right up." I hang up before I can get a response. I fix my long chestnut brown hair, my black pencil skirt and pale blue, short-sleeved blouse and knock on Jack's door.

"Come in," he calls. He's on the phone when I open the door.

"Um, I'm just running up to Mr. Grey's office for a moment."

His brows furrow. "What for?"

I shrug.

"Okay, off you go." He smiles and I leave.


	2. Chapter 2

When I step out of the elevator on the top floor of Grey Publishing, I exit and walk down a narrow hallway until I reach the end where Buzz Cut is standing just outside the door. I approach the door and his hand snaps up in front of me. His face remains expressionless while mine must be confused.

"I-I'm Anastasia Steele. Mr. Grey asked me to come up?" I inform Buzz Cut. He drops his hand and motions me inside. I open the door into a large white and grey sterile office. When I step inside, Grey is sitting at a mahogany desk that sits in front of a large floor-to-ceiling window. Artwork hangs on the walls around the office and large bookshelves stand behind him, but they still allow the bright Seattle light in.

"Ah, Miss Steele," Mr. Grey says as he stands to greet me. He walks around the desk and holds his hand out. "Nice to see you again." He smiles.

"Mr. Grey," I say when I shake his hand.

"Would you like to sit down?" He motions to a large, black leather, U-shaped couch at the other side of the office. In the middle sits a mahogany coffee table. I take a seat and he sits down next to me, sitting back with his arm resting along the back of the couch.

"So, how can I help you, Mr. Grey?" I ask professionally, but I can't hide my look of surprise as I look at him. His beauty is unexplainable. His unruly copper hair looks so smooth, I'm tempted to scoot close to him and just run my fingers through it. His gray eyes bore into my blue ones, and all the muscles in my belly clench. I squirm in my seat, but I try to make it seem like I am uncomfortable. _Of course you're uncomfortable! _I scold myself internally.

"Well, Miss Steele, you are a new employee at my company and I thought it would be wise to meet you one on one."

_Oh?_

"I see." I look down at my hands. Meeting one on one could mean a lot of things.

"So, what brings you to Grey Publishing?" he asks casually.

"Um, I've already been interviewed. It's in my file, sir."

He laughs. "Don't worry, Miss Steele. I'm not going to fire you if you don't answer my questions. I just want to learn more about you."

_Oh, well then…_

"Okay, well…the truth is, I just moved here with my friend from Portland. I just graduated from WSU and I've been looking around for internships at different publishing houses."

"This wasn't your first choice?" He cocks his eyebrow and just stares at me, waiting for my answer.

I shake my head.

"I see."

Suddenly his phone rings, startling me.

"Excuse me," he says as he walks over to his desk.

I get to my feet. "No, I should get back to work, sir. It's my first day and I really should be going." _Please, let me go. I don't need another interview. _I already feel uneasy enough without adding tall, dark and handsome to the mix.

"No, no, Miss Steele, I'll just be a moment." He reaches for his phone.

"I really need to go." And before I wait for his response, I walk out the door and down the hall towards the elevators. I press the call button when Grey reaches me.

"I don't like being ignored, Miss Steele." God, he looks so gorgeous in that suit. His hair is tempting to curl my fingers through it, his perfect lips tempt me to kiss them, and his eyes tempt me to beg him to take me as is.

The elevator arrives and I rush in and press the button for the main floor. Before the doors close, Grey stops them, causing them to open again. He leans against the wall and just stares at me impassively. Oh, what are you thinking? Please, tell me what you're thinking.

"What are you doing tonight?" he asks.

_Whoa, what?_

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"Um, I'm going home, why?" I can't help but ask why. My curiosity is burning because I can't help but want this man right now. And he's nearly inside the elevator and my temptation is begging me to pull him in and take him here and now.

"Would you join me for dinner tonight, since you're too busy to talk to me now?" He smirks at me and my heart stops. Oh, that smile.

"Um…"

"I'll call you." He steps back and watches me as the elevator closes. It descends down to the ground floor. The whole time I think of Christian Grey, with his glorious features, kissing me, taking me here in this elevator.

When I reach my destination, the bell dings and I realize I'm cupping my breasts. _Holy shit! _I throw my hands to my sides and quickly walk back to my desk.

"You're back," Jack says, coming back from the kitchen.

"Y-Yeah." I sit down and begin going over the manuscripts that were left on my desk.

"Okay, well, if you can get reports done on the first two chapters on those manuscripts, maybe we can go for a drink after work?" he asks hopefully.

"Um, actually Jack, I have plans tonight. Maybe another night?"

"Sure," he says with a smile and heads back into his office, closing the door behind him.

I start back on my work when something hits me. Christian Grey is going to call me? He doesn't even have my number.


	3. Chapter 3

When I get home that night, Kate is working on her laptop, pen in her mouth as she focuses on whatever she's doing. I walk over and collapse onto the couch beside her. She doesn't seem to notice. Jeez, when this girl gets to work she gets to work. I slouch there for another minute or so before I decide to exhale loud enough to hear from across the hallway.

"How was your day?" she finally asks me without looking away from the computer screen.

"Exhausting and weird." That got her attention.

"Weird, how?" she asks finally looking at me.

"I had some weird introduction to the CEO of the publishing house I work for."

"Was he some seventy-three year old guy trying to hit on you?" She smiles with her pen still hanging from between her teeth.

I managed a laugh. "No. But surprisingly enough, he's really young. Somewhere in his twenties, I guess."

"Do you know his name?"

"Christian Grey."

Kate's eyes go wide. She quickly minimizes the pages she was going through and opened up a fresh Google page and typed in Grey's name into the search engine. She looked over a few links before she just decided to go through the images. She turns the computer towards me.

"This Christian Grey?"

I nod quickly when the beautiful man I see the man I work for in multiple pictures. There are pictures of him with a group of other men, smiling. There are even pictures of him smiling and getting close with women. Honestly, seeing him with other women made me feel…jealous, and that's pretty new to me. Who knew I'd be jealous of my boss's personal life?

"Wow." That's all I could manage as I stared into gorgeous gray eyes. Even his smile was perfect: perfect white teeth inside a beautifully sculptured mouth. _Mm, what I would like to do to this man. _

"Good looking, right?" Kate asks.

"Yeah."

She closes her laptop and sets it on the dining room table and turns to me. She hasn't stopped smiling since Grey came up in conversation. She soon develops that look on her face that says "I have an idea".

"What?" I ask nervously.

"You like him, don't you?"

"What would give you that impression?"

"I can see it in your eyes, Ana," she says with a wink. I close my eyes and try to look like I'm too tired to keep my eyes open. I can't help but shake the feeling that I may like this guy, but why does it make me so nervous that I can barely talk to my best friend about it?

The phone rings, startling my eyes open. I look around for the phone all over the living room before I look up to see Kate shaking it in her hand before answering it.

"Hello?...Yes she is…"

Oh God, could it be him? No, I am way too exhausted to get worked up or ready for dinner with that man.

Kate holds the phone out to me.

"It's Jose," she says rolling her eyes and I can understand why. Ever since Kate and I had moved to Seattle, Jose has been calling me everyday to ask how I was settling in. I appreciate that he cares, but sometimes he cares too much. I also know that he keeps calling because he has feelings for me that he can't seem to get over. I have told him multiple times that I'm not interested and he's like the brother I never had.

Truthfully, I'm a little disappointed that it wasn't Grey who called me.

"Hello?" I take the phone into my bedroom and close the door.

"Hey, Ana, how are you?"

"I'm good. I'm as good as yesterday and the day before that." I lie about my current feelings because right now I'm just not sure how I am. All I can think about is gray eyes, copper hair and perfect teeth. And soon I find myself thinking about those hands of his running up my legs towards the apex of my thighs, cupping me. Long fingers stroking me tenderly before inserting a finger inside me. _Oh…_

"Ana!" Jose's voice pulls me out of my erotic daydream.

"What?"

"Do you mind?"

"I'm sorry, what?" The confusion is not lost in my voice.

"Do you mind if I come to Seattle this weekend to visit? We can go for a drink and catch up." He sounds so hopeful.

"Oh, Jose—"

"Please, Ana?" he begs me. I sigh. I can never say no to him.

"Sure," I say with a half smile.

"Great, I'll see you Friday. Bye," he says before he hangs up. I press the "off" button before walking back out of my room and put the phone back on its holder. I shrug off my black fitted blazer and throw it on the back of one of the dining room chairs. I then head to the kitchen and start pulling things together for pasta and salad.

When I get to work the next morning, I feel disappointed and relieved at the same time. I'm disappointed because Grey never called me about dinner, and I'm relieved that I'll have two of my closest friends around to keep me occupied.

I walk into the office and sit down at my desk, boot up my computer and pull out the reports on the new manuscripts I received before coming into work. When my computer is ready to go, I open up a fresh document and begin typing them before I submit them.

I've been working for a while before my office phone rings. I answer it on the second ring.

"Grey Publishing, Anastasia Steele speaking." I remain focused on the task at hand.

"Good morning, Miss Steele," Grey says seductively.

"Good morning, Mr. Grey, how can I help you?"

"Well, you could try helping me by agreeing to a dinner arrangement Friday evening." My eyes go wide. Friday? Jose is supposed to be visiting Friday; I can't go out with Grey.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Grey, but I have plans on Friday evening," I say with as much apology in my voice as I can manage.

"Oh? Who with?" he asks curiously. Jeez, can't he just leave it at that?

"A friend of mine who's visiting from Portland, sir."

I can hear him let out a deep breath. "I see. How about Saturday?"

"He's visiting all weekend," I say with a bit of irritability. Can't he just accept that I can't make it and move on? I'm kind of tempted to tell him to take a hike and hang up, but I want to see how far this will go.

"He?" Oh shit, he doesn't sound too happy. _Who cares? He doesn't own you, let him stew._

"Yes, my friend Jose," I say sternly.

"I see." He lets silence creep on the line between us. I would try and break it, but I don't know what to say to ease the situation. If I had to be honest, I would love to go to dinner with Grey, but I feel like that would be crossing some sort of boundary line. I don't want to get fired because I went out with the owner.

"Ana, can I see you for a moment?" Jack calls from his office.

"Yes, sir. Mr. Grey I have to go." I hang up before I give him a chance to answer. Grabbing my notebook, I rush into Jack's office.

"Someone's eager," he says with a smile.

"Just eager to get busy, sir."

When Jack and I are finished discussing a new author, I walk back to my desk and sit down, relaxing against the back before I sit up straight and work on the last manuscript I have.

A few moments later a shadow passes beside me and I look up into the intense gray eyes of Christian Grey. He doesn't look too happy. _Oh crap. _

"Miss Steele," he says a little upset, but his face remains calm.

"Mr. Grey," I say as I slowly get to my feet, our eyes never looking away. He just stands there with his hands in the pockets of his gray slacks and looking down at me. His hair slightly hanging in his eyes adds a bit more intensity to his molten gray eyes. My goodness, that look does things to me. I shift from foot to foot without being obvious that the appearance of this man makes me a little uncomfortable.

"I did not appreciate you hanging up on me," he says impassively.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I had to work. I can't be spending time working out dinner plans with the boss. I just started—"

"I am not going to fire you just because you stop what you're doing to talk to me."

My eyes widen a little and he smirks. _Oh, that mouth…_

"Regardless, Mr. Grey, I need to work. I need to be busy. And Jack—"

Grey snorts. "Please, Hyde should be no concern of yours. I own his ass and if he gives you any problems, you come to me." He's serious.

I nod.

"Good. Now about what I came down here for, besides you rudely hanging up on me," he says and I flush. "You have a friend coming to visit you this weekend?"

"Yes, sir," I say nervously.

"Thursday," he says before retreating to the door.

_Wait, what?_

"I'll call you with the details," he says with a smirk and he's gone. What the hell just happened? Did that man really just insist on dinner this Thursday without my consent? The nerve of that man! Well, just because he makes the plans doesn't mean I'm going to go along with them.


	4. Chapter 4

Thursday comes around in no time at all. I have been dreading today since Grey made these plans. Do I really want to go to dinner with that man? _Of course you do, _my subconscious says to me. What I don't seem to understand is why Christian Grey is so acquisitive about me.

I'm at work when my office phone rings.

"Hello?" I say in a dull voice because so far every time my phone rings, it's _him_.

"Ana?" It's Claire from reception.

"Hello, Claire," I say happier. Thank God it's someone else.

"There's some gorgeous guy here in reception looking for you."

"Name?"

"I'm sorry, what's your name sir?" She says away from the phone. I don't hear the answer. "Ethan Kavanagh." Ethan? What's he doing here? Who cares? I get to my feet and rush out to reception. There stood Kate's brother, Ethan. All tall, blonde and pale in his appearance, I couldn't help but smile when I saw him. He was wearing worn jeans and a green and white checked shirt.

"Ethan, it's good to see you," I say and he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me in a tight hug.

"Hey, Steele," he says with a glowing smile. I could never get over how good looking Ethan was. He was mine and Kate's age and he was so intelligent. I always knew Ethan had a thing for me, too, but he never said anything. Whenever he would ask me to hang out, he would be discreet about the idea of the word "date".

"I was wondering if you wanted to go out for lunch with me today." He smiles hopefully at me.

"Of course, I'd love to." I smile back at him with excitement.

"Great, let's go."

"Let me grab my purse."

Ethan takes me to a small restaurant called Andaluca. It's very bright inside with the lights that reflect off the wood that frame the seats. The hostess directs us to a booth, hands us our menus and leaves.

"So, Miss Ana Steele," Ethan says looking over his menu. "How goes the work life?"

"It's good, Ethan. I'm really happy with my job." I flash him my best smile.

He smiles back. "That's good."

We sit in silence for a little while until the waitress comes by and hands us a pitcher of water. Ethan pours some into our glasses and I take a small sip. It's cool and refreshing.

"So, is there a new man in your life?" Ethan asks.

"Um, not really." I would mention Christian, but I'm not sure I want to get into that subject.

"Thanks for lunch, Ethan." I quickly hug him. We are now standing in the lobby of GP. We had a very filling lunch and I couldn't wait to get off my feet. It was so nice to see Ethan again.

"So I hear Jose's coming down for the weekend," he says matter-of-factly.

I nod.

"Well, if you ever need to get away, you can—"

"Miss Steele," a familiar voice interrupts Ethan. I turn around to find Grey walking out of one of the elevators and towards us, Buzz Cut following closely behind him.

"Mr. Grey," I say. When he gets close enough to us he turns his attention to Ethan and his face darkens. Ethan stares back at Grey without a look of intimidation. Oh, Ethan I am in awe of your strength against this beautiful man. Even standing next to him puts me on edge. But now I can smell his lovely scent. It's heavenly and I feel the urge to lean in close to him to smell him better. I catch whiff of expensive body wash, freshly laundered linen and cologne. _Mm…_

"I don't believe we've met," Grey says to Ethan, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"I'm Ethan Kavanagh." Ethan holds out his hand and Grey shakes it. "I'm a friend of Ana's." He looks at me and smiles. I smile shyly at him. Grey looks down at me with furrowed eyebrows.

"Really?" he says as if he's not surprised. "Well it was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kavanagh." Grey nods politely.

"Yeah, you too. I'll catch ya later, Ana." He smiles and leaves. Grey moves around to stand in front of me. I look up to meet dark gray eyes. I'm not sure if I should be worried or not.

"You seem to have quite a list of male friends, Anastasia." He frowns.

"I get along better with men better than women, I guess." I cock an eyebrow, feeling a bit braver.

"Does he like you?" he asks casually.

"Excuse me?"

"Does he have a crush on you? Does he want to date you?" he asks me in a way as if I don't understand. _I have a 4.0 GPA, don't treat me like a dummy, Grey_.

"N-No," I say. Although sometimes I wish we were together. But being in the presence of this Greek god makes me wish otherwise. I can never make up my mind when it comes to men. But Ethan was always a sure thing.

"Good, because I haven't had my share of you yet, Miss Steele."

_Whoa, what?_

He hasn't had his share of me? What am I a piece of apple pie? Screw that. Without another word, I turn on my heel, feeling completely degraded and walk back through the lobby of the building and to my desk.

"I'll see you this evening," he calls after me.


	5. Chapter 5

_Ping! _My e-mail rings from my new Mac computer. I bought it before I moved to Seattle so I could work from home if I had to. I walk over and open the e-mail. _Holy shit! _It's from Grey.

* * *

**To: **Anastasia Steele  
**Subject: **Dinner  
**Date: **April 11 2011 18:24  
**From: **Christian Grey

Miss Steele

I will be around to collect you for dinner at 7:30. Be ready, I do not like to be kept waiting.

Christian Grey  
CEO, Grey Publishing

* * *

He doesn't like to be kept waiting? Isn't he a bossy thing? And how the hell did he get my damn e-mail address?

By six fifty-eight I'm showered, dressed and ready for dinner. I borrowed Kate's silver strapless cocktail dress. It's reasonably cut to mid-thigh. I'm wearing matching silver pumps and carrying a silver clutch. I feel so decorative tonight.

My e-mail pings.

* * *

**To:** Anastasia Steele  
**Subject: **Outside  
**Date: **April 11 2011 19:00  
**From: **Christian Grey

Miss Steele

I am outside your apartment.

Christian Grey  
CEO, Grey Publishing

* * *

Oh dear, tonight could go any way. It could go good, bad, maybe somewhere in between.

_Shut up! You're over thinking everything, _my subconscious scolds me. I take a deep breath, say goodbye to Kate and I'm out the door.

When I make it outside the building to find a black Audi SUV parked at the curb, I am immediately stunned but I manage to keep myself going as I approach the beasty vehicle. Buzz Cut comes around and opens the back door for me.

"Thank you," I say with a polite smile as I step in inside. When the door closes behind me I look over at Grey and see him smartly dressed in a sharp black suit, crisp white shirt and matching black tie. God, he looks edible. He's smiling at me and I can't help but smile back.

"Good evening, Miss Steele," he says with a voice like velvet. "You look lovely this evening."

I blush. "Thank you, Mr. Grey."

"Are you ready for dinner?" he asks.

I nod and he smiles.

When we arrive at a very fancy-looking restaurant, Grey takes my hand and we walk in before I can catch the name of it.

"Name of Grey, table for two." he says to the host. He sounds so business-like. It's kind of hot.

"Right this way, Mr. Grey." The host directs us to a secluded table in a corner of the restaurant. Grey thanks the waiter and I smile at him before I sit down. I quickly pick up the menu to avoid eye contact with my boss. As nice and romantic as this all seems, it's still awkward considering Christian Grey is the owner and the boss of the company I work for.

"Anything to drink?" he asks me.

I look up. "Um, wine will be fine for me, please."

He smiles and summons a nearby waiter. He gives the name of the wine he wants and the waiter nods and heads out of sight.

"Thank you for coming tonight, Anastasia." Oh we're on a first name basis now?

"It's not like you gave me much of a choice, Mr. Grey," I snap, not meaning to. His smile remains.

"No, I suppose not."

We sit in silence for a few moments.

"What's your relationship with that Kavanagh kid?" He's serious now. Just when I was beginning to get used to him. His moods tick by as quickly as the tick on a clock.

"Ethan? He's a good friend of mine and my roommate's brother. Why?"

The waiter arrives with our drinks and I take a long sip of mine.

"I don't like him. He wants into your panties," he says in a low voice. I almost choke on my wine when he says this. _Say what?_ Well maybe I want Ethan in my pants. At least I know him and he doesn't take away my choice of going out with someone.

"And how would you know that?"

"The look in his eyes and how close he gets to you."

I scoff.

"Is something amusing you, Miss Steele?"

"Yes you, Mr. Grey."

"And why is that?" He takes a sip of his wine without looking away from me.

A waitress approaches our table, notepad and pen in hand.

"I'll have the black cod, with mashed potatoes and green beans." Grey looks at me, as does the waitress. I'm not sure what the hell to get so I just pick at random.

"I'll have the same, but instead of the cod I'll have the steak, cooked medium rare, please." The waitress smiles at me, but beams at Grey. He doesn't seem to notice as she disappears.

"So back to Ethan," Grey says casually. "I don't like him."

"With all do respect, Mr. Grey, you are just my boss at GP. You are not at liberty to like who I associate with unless we are in the workplace." I felt brave as I spoke out in defense for my friend and myself.

He smirks. "With all do respect, Miss Steele, I am. Where you're concerned, I am entitled to. I take care of all my employees."

That could mean anything! Seriously, what is his game tonight? He thinks Ethan wants into my bed, but he's been hounding me for dinner. For all I know, his plan is accomplish getting on top of me. I don't plan on letting that happen. The last time I slept with a man, I thought we were in love, but as it turns out he had a bet going on with his friends that he could get me into bed within a week. As beautiful as this man is, I'm not falling for his crap.

"You have no idea what goes on inside Ethan's mind anymore than a psychic can actually prove their talent, sir." I'm serious.

He raises his eyebrows. "Fair point made, Miss Steele. But I do know that I want to keep him away from you."

My eyes widen. "Excuse me? You've only known me a few days. You're my boss, not my father. You cannot keep me away from one of the many people I've known for years, Mr. Grey." Our food arrives but I'm too shocked and upset to eat, but I do anyway because I know I'll regret it later. I pick at my potatoes and carefully pop some into my mouth and tag a swig of wine. This man is beyond ridiculous.

He exhales deeply. "I apologize, Miss Steele." I look up to see him watching me carefully.

"For..?" I ask as if I don't know.

"I don't mean to come off as an asshole."

"You're a control freak," I say without thinking and I immediately regret it.

He nods. "If you consider me a man who's used to having control over everything and anything, then yes, you're right," he says in a lower voice.

"Mr. Grey, I work for you. And I am not your property that you can dictate who has me and who doesn't."

"You're right, Anastasia."

When we finish our meal, Grey pays the check and holds his hand out to me. I take it and we walk back out to meet his driver.


	6. Chapter 6

"Thank you for dinner," I say to Grey before his driver comes around and opens my door.

"The pleasure was all mine, Miss Steele," he says with a nod.

I climb out of the Audi and turn to Buzz Cut.

"Thank you, um…"

"Taylor, ma'am." He gives me a warm smile.

"Taylor." I try the word and return his smile. "Thank you."

He nods and closes the door before climbing back into the driver's seat. Grey walks around the back of the car and follows me up to the building, all the while I'm searching for my keys in my clutch.

When I find them I turn to Grey. "Thank you and goodnight, Mr. Grey."

"Goodnight, Miss Steele," he says with a smirk. I know I should be going inside but I can't help but stare up into this beautiful man's face. His smoldering gray eyes, perfect slanted nose and perfectly chiseled lips. Just looking at him makes me feel things I have never felt with anyone else. It's so intense that I could have an orgasm just looking at him long enough.

"Something on your mind, Miss Steele?" Grey's voice pulls me out of my reverie.

I shake my head. "No, nothing at all." I lie.

"You're a very poor liar." He smirks. _Is this man laughing at me?_

"You, um…you can go now." I point my chin towards the car.

"Once I've seen that you're safely inside the building, Miss Steele."

I roll my eyes at him.

"Did you just roll your eyes at me, Miss Steele?" _Uh oh._

I shake my head.

"I think you did."

"Well there's really nothing you can do about it, is there?" I ask slightly sarcastic.

He smirks. "No, I suppose not."

My God, that smirk of his. I bite my lip to hold back mentioning any dirty thoughts or unnecessary things to him, such as _you cannot tell me who can be my friend or who can't_, or even _if someone wants into my pants, I'll be the judge of who can and can't_.

I shift from foot to foot and look down. I soon unlock and open the door to the building and step inside, heading up the stairs without a second glance back. I would have said another goodnight, but I was worried that I would say more to that man than just 'goodnight'.

I walk into the apartment to find Kate watching TV and anxiously tapping her foot. She quickly turns and looks at me.

"Ana!" she squeals. Getting to her feet, she runs towards me and hugs me hard.

"Whoa, Kate calm down." I try to nudge her off until she lets go and holds me at arms length and checks me all over.

"Are you okay?" she asks concerned.

"Yes, Kate, I'm fine. Would you please calm down?"

She takes a deep breath and immediately relaxes.

"So…how was it?" she asks innocently. I walk around her to kick off my shoes and put my clutch down on the living room couch before crashing onto it, exhausted. Kate takes the spot next to me and looks at me excited. I turn my head to glare at her.

"What?" I ask in a harsh voice.

"Don't take that tone with me, Ana Steele. You are my best friend and I'm entitled to know what happens on dates with random men." _Jesus, she sounds just like, Grey!_

I roll my eyes. "It was fine."

She sits there for a minute. "That's it?" I nod. "Liar, now tell me everything."

I sigh. "Fine, he was fine, the food was fine, and the whole night was fine."

"What did you guys talk about?" Great, here comes the Katherine Kavanagh Inquisition. I really don't want to relive the moments of tonight where my boss tried to tell me that I should stay away from your brother, Kate.

"Oh you know this and that."

"Don't hold out on me, Ana." _My goodness, does this girl ever give up? _"I know there's more to your date than what you're telling me." She narrows her eyes at me.

"Oh jeez," I murmur under my breath. "He told me I should stay away from Ethan."

And here comes the Katherine Kavanagh scowl.

"Excuse me?" she snaps.

"Yeah," I say still in disbelief of his audacity.

"Um, in case anyone hasn't realized this, he's just your boss, Ana. He can't tell you who you can and can not be around."

"That's what I said to him."

"Are you going to see him again?" she asks, the irritation still lingers in her beautiful green eyes.

I shake my head. "Not privately, anyway." I vow to make that a promise to myself. But now I can't stop thinking about losing my job if I choose not to see him anymore.

"Good for you. You've come a long way, Ana." She hugs me and I go back to my room to fall into an exhausted sleep and dream of copper hair and angry gray eyes.

"Good morning, Ana," Jack greets me with a smile when I head to my desk.

"Good morning, Jack." I smile back.

He gives me a once over. "You look lovely this morning."

I blush. "Thank you." I'm wearing a pair of white slacks and a mint green button up shirt and black high heeled sandals. My hair is hanging down in a chestnut veil down to my breasts. I feel professional and sexy.

"We have a meeting this morning and I'd like you to attend with me."

"Of course," I say. I wish I had taken a bit to think about my response. Going to this meeting means I'll be facing Christian Grey. I'm not sure I'm ready to considering the events of last night.

I follow Jack into the meeting room to find that Grey is already there. He looks delicious. His hair is tousled; he's wearing a gray suit with white shirt and a silver silk tie. He smiles at me and I give him a tight smile before sitting down at the opposite end of the table. I glance up to see him eyeing me suspiciously. I look away and suddenly feel a hand on my shoulder. I look up to see Jack standing behind me.

"Everything okay, Ana?" he whispers to me. I just nod my head and open my notebook, ready to take notes.

Throughout the entire meeting I have to fight with my urges multiple times to keep from looking up into the eyes of Christian Oh-So-Hot Grey. But the entire time I can feel his eyes on me. When he speaks it's almost like he's talking directly to me.

When the meeting ends, I get to my feet to follow Jack out the door, but I'm stopped by a hand of my elbow. I look around to see Taylor.

"Miss Steele, I was wondering if I could have a word with you." Grey says. This wasn't really a request. When everyone else is gone, Grey gives a nod to Taylor and he exits the room, closing the door behind him.

I try to keep my cool. "What do you want?" When I finally look up into his eyes, I can't look away. _And this is why you avoided them all morning_, my subconscious scolds me. She's right…

Grey gets to his feet and rounds the table until he's inches away from me.

"I would like to know why you wouldn't look at me," he says quietly. Quiet enough to have me worrying a little. I can feel my hands begin to shake at the intensity of how close he is and the intensity of his eyes on me. _Oh dear_.

"I, um…I was too focused on the meeting." I lie. "I was trying to take notes down as everyone was talking."

"Once again, Miss Steele, you are a hopeless liar," he says.

"Mr. Grey—"

He groans, cutting me off. "Oh, enough with the Mr. Grey already; call me Christian," he says with a smile.

"Mr. Gr—" I catch myself. "Christian, I don't think that would be appropriate."

He frowns. "And why is that?" he asks when leans down to sit on the table top.

"W-Well…" _Those eyes, ugh!_ "You're my boss. It's like referring to a teacher by their first name."

He nods. "Fair point, but no matter, Christian is my given name, while Mr. Grey is my father." He smirks at me. I take a quick glance at my watch.

"I really should be going, I have work to do, sir." _Please, let me go._

"Wait." He reaches out and grasps my elbow, pulling me back closer to him. That electric current is still there and more intense than ever. _Oh my…_

And before I know what's going on, Grey swoops down and catches my lips with his. I drop everything in my hands and move my hands up into his soft, copper hair. It's softer than I expected. His hands move down to my hips and turn me around so my behind is against the edge of the table. One hand comes up to cup my face while the other stays on my hip.

"You're so sweet and strong, Anastasia," he whispers against my lips. His breath is so sweet and intoxicating. The hand that rested on my hip now moves to the small of my back, pulling me against him and I can feel his rock hard erection. Of all the women in world, let alone in this building, this beautiful man wants _me_. The thought turns me on even more.

Grey pushes his hips into mine and I moan as the muscles in my belly clench.

There's a knock at the door. Grey growls and pulls away, straightening himself out.

"Come in," he snaps. Jack walks in and looks confused.

"There you are, Ana," he says. He looks us over. "Am I interrupting something, sir?" he asks, his eyes darkening and lips form into a tight line.

Grey looks down at me, and I'm trying to control my breathing without giving anything away to Jack. How weird would that be? It's bad enough he pretty much walked in on me kissing the owner of the company.

"Everything is fine, Hyde," Grey says matter-of-factly.

Jack nods and motions me out. I pick up my dropped notebook and head out.

I'm halfway through reception when Jack pulls me to a stop. "What the hell was that, Ana?" he whispers in slight anger.

"N-Nothing, Jack." I hope he can't see that I'm lying.

"Really? 'Cause it didn't look like nothing to me," he growls. Jeez, what is he deal? He's acting like a jealous boyfriend. I shudder at the thought of Jack and I ever having anything.

When I get back to my desk, I remember the kiss between Grey and me. It was deep, passionate and extremely arousing. His skilled lips wrestling with mine was enough to make me wet. I reach up and touch my lips which are swollen. I cross my legs because my bundles of nerves are still throbbing from the intimacy.

Oh, what am I going to do about this man?


	7. Chapter 7

At noon my e-mail rings.

* * *

**To: **Anastasia Steele  
**Subject: **Lunch?  
**Date: **April 12 2011 12:00  
**From: **Ethan Kavanagh

Hey, Steele!

I was wondering if you wanted to come and have lunch with me today?

* * *

I type a quick reply.

* * *

**To: **Ethan Kavanagh  
**Subject: **Lunch?  
**Date: **April 12 2011 12:02  
**From: **Anastasia Steele

That sounds lovely, Ethan. Where should I meet you?

Anastasia Steele  
Assistant to Jack Hyde, Editor, Grey Publishing

* * *

My e-mail rings almost instantly.

* * *

**To: **Anastasia Steele  
**Subject: **Lunch?  
**Date: **April 12 2011 12:03  
**From: **Ethan Kavanagh

I'm outside GP with my car.

* * *

I jump to my feet, grab my coat and purse and walk to Jack's office to let him know I'm going for lunch. He nods and waves me out and I head out to reception. Just before I make it to the front door, I hear a voice call my name.

"Anastasia," Grey calls from behind me. I turn to look at him. He gracefully walks over to me with a smile on his face. "Good, I caught you before you left. I was hoping you would come and have lunch with me."

I look down at my feet and I guess his eyes follow when he asks his next question.

"Are you going somewhere?"

I nod. "Yes, I'm going out for lunch with a friend."

Grey leans over to look out the glass doors and I follow them to see Ethan standing outside the passenger door of his car, arms crossed over his chest, waiting. I turn back to Grey, whose eyes have darkened. He doesn't look too happy.

"You're going out with that boy?" he snaps.

"His name is Ethan and yes, I am."

"I see." He continues to stare down at me.

"Oh, come off it, Grey. It's better than having my friend come down and spend the weekend at my apartment," I blurt out before I have a chance to stop myself. _Damn it, Ana! _

His eyes darken further. "Male or female?"

I gulp. "Male." I look down. "But," I add. "I won't be alone with me." _Ha, you can't be mad about that. _

"Will Kavanagh be with you?"

"Yes," I say, trying to push his buttons.

He glares at me.

"His sister and my roommate _Katherine _Kavanagh will be with us."

He smirks. "Clever, Miss Steele. Are you deliberately trying to push me?"

I flush. "Possibly," I mutter.

"Well you would do well to remember that I do not respond well to others trying to take what's mine."

My head snapped up—quick enough to give me whiplash. His? Is that a joke? I'm not anyone's! I don't belong to him or anyone else. I stand there and stare quietly at him. God, he's so beautiful. But how could someone so beautiful have such a controlling streak, unless he uses his looks to manipulate control over things. But I am not going to let him think I belong to him.

"Excuse me?" I snap, nearly shouting. Grey looks around cautiously before turning his gaze back to me. "I am not yours." I say in a lower voice. "I don't belong to you. I am an independent woman, thank you very much."

He smirks and it's enough to make me hot and bothered. Everything about this man is beautiful, except his ways of showing a woman he likes her. He may need to work on that a little more.

"You became mine the second our lips touched, Miss Steele," he whispers.

"A kiss doesn't mean anything," I snap again.

"It does when electricity sparks." I look up into his eyes. Did he feel it, too?

"Yes Anastasia, I felt it, too," he says answering my unspoken question.

But that doesn't mean you own me, Mr. Grey." He gives me a look. "Christian." Even his name has a sensual feel to it, the way it rolls off the tongue.

"Better and yes it does." I'm confused. "You haven't felt this type of connection with any of your other suitors, have you?"

What the hell, how would he know?

"I may know you better than you think," he says with a smirk. His eyes seemed to have darkened with…seduction? No. I turn around to look outside to see Ethan watching me. I turn back to Christian.

"I really should be going." I back up and walk out of the building.

Lunch with Ethan was great. He told me about his plans to get a job with his dad. He even told me some funny stories about what he and Kate had done when they were kids. I couldn't stop laughing long enough to eat my lunch, so he had to change the subject.

He drove me back to work and kissed my cheek before I came back inside. I got back to my desk to find half a dozen white roses with a note attached to it.

_"A strong woman who recklessly throws away her strength, she is worse than a weak woman who has never had any strength to throw away."_

This quote is from _Tess of the d'Urbervilles_! I look over the quote again and look for a signature. There isn't one, odd. But then there's only one person who could have sent these flowers and I roll my eyes.

I move them aside and set about getting to work. I need to work to keep my mind off of the man upstairs, so to speak. As much as I admire him and his attempted sweetness, is it really healthy and worth it to continue all of this?

When five o'clock rolls around, I shut my computer down, throw my coat on, pick up my purse and head out to reception. Claire waves goodbye to me and I to her. And as my fingers touch the glass of the front door, an arm grabs me around my waist and hauls me back into a deserted board room. I fight against my assailant, only to fail and be pushed up against a wall with a hand over my mouth.

"Calm down and don't scream," Christian whispers to me. His molten gray eyes find my blue ones. I shake my head to move his hand. "Not until you promise not to scream." I roll my eyes and nod my head. He slowly pulls his hand away and I find that his hips are holding me against the wall, holding me in place.

"What are you doing?" I whisper irritated. _Does this man ever give up? _He and Kate would be great together, although the idea makes me mad.

"Please, Anastasia." He rests his forehead against mine.

Huh? "Please what, Christian?" I'm confused.

"Please be mine. I need you, Anastasia. I've needed and wanted you since I first laid eyes on you." His breath is sweet in my face and I'm temporarily drunk. His scent is even more intoxicating: expensive body wash, freshly laundered clothes and very expensive cologne.

I struggle with my decision to be with Christian. I want to be with him, but at the same time I don't.

_Damn it, Ana, make up your mind. _

"Yes," I say quickly.

Christian's eyes light up. "Yes?" He seems so excited. Surely, he has no reason to be.

"Yes, I'll be with you. But only if you promise me one thing."

"Anything," he says desperately.

"Stop calling me Anastasia."

"But…that's your name," he says with a frown.

I shake my head.

He sighs heavily. "Fine, what do I call you?"

"Ana."

He smiles. "Deal."


	8. Chapter 8

When I finally get home, I see Kate working on her laptop at the dining table. I don't think she hears me come in, so I just stroll into the kitchen and turn on the kettle for tea. I go about the kitchen looking for something to eat. I had a big lunch, but the fullness went away too quickly.

I choose to have some green tea with lemon and honey. I grab my teacup and walk out to the dining room and take a seat next to Kate who's working on an article for the magazine _Seattle Metropolitan. _I've never really heard of it until she told me she got a job there before we moved.

"So when is Jose supposed to get in?" Kate asks without looking away from her work.

"Um…" I check my watch and see it's five-fifty two. "About eight o'clock, I guess."

"Okay." And that's the end our conversation until she finally decides to take a break. She has until next Tuesday to have it ready. I'm an overachiever myself, but damn this girl gets bad.

A little while later, Kate is still working on her article and I decide to break her away from it for a bit.

"What else can you tell me about Christian Grey?" I ask. She glances up with sudden interest and smiles. Without a word, she minimizes her work and opens up a fresh Google page and types in his name. She goes through a few sites until she finds one with enough information to write a book.

"Hmm, this looks interesting," she says.

"What?" I look at the page over her shoulder.

"It says he was adopted when he was four. His family is rich, but not insanely, and he owns another company called _Grey Enterprises Holdings_." She raises her eyebrows in surprise.

That's interesting. Well I think it's only fair that if he knows a few things about me, I should know a few things about him. _Tit for tat, Mr. Grey_.

It's eight o'clock and there's a knock at the door. Kate has finally given up on her article for the night and come to watch TV with me.

She gets up and skips to the door. When she opens it, there's a very handsome man at the door. My jaw hits the floor. His hair is blonde and curly and he has the most amazing blue eyes I have ever seen. He's wearing a pair of blue jeans. a white t-shirt and a brown suede jacket.

"Ana," Kate says blushing a little. _Kate blushing? This is new. _"This is Elliot. Elliot, my best friend and roommate, Ana."

"Hey," Elliot says with a smile and holds out his hand. I shake it and smile back at him.

"Nice to meet you, Elliot." I look at Kate who's all gaga over him. Elliot shoves his hands in his pockets and looks around the apartment.

"Nice place you've got here," he says.

"Thanks. Kate's parents bought it for us."

Kate nods and I can't help but ask, "So how did you two meet?" Kate is still staring at Elliot. Elliot seems oblivious to it.

"I helped her fix the fan belt in her car the other day." Elliot smiles at Kate, making her blush a little more.

"I see."

"Yeah," Kate says. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited Elliot over for dinner."

"No, it's not bother. Jose should be here soon."

A moment later, there's another knock at the door. I walk around Kate and Elliot and open the door. Jose is standing there all tall, muscular, tan and all. He hasn't changed a bit.

"Jose, it's so good to see you!" I hug him tightly. Even though he can be a pain because of his feelings for me, he's still a good friend.

"Hey, Ana." He looks up and sees Kate and smiles at her.

"Jose!" Kate squeals as she jumps into his arms, hugging him tightly. "Come in." She looks at Elliot. "Jose, this is my friend, Elliot. Elliot, my friend, Jose."

"Nice to meet you, man," Jose says shaking Elliot's hand.

"Back at'cha."

Jose groans as he sits back on the couch and chews what's left of his food. Kate, Elliot and I were seated on the floor around the wooden coffee table. Jose had gone through his food too quickly while the rest of us take our time. We sat around eating and watching stupid TV shows when Elliot's phone rings.

"Hello?" he answers with food in his mouth. "Oh, hey bro." He swallows his food. "Yeah…Okay…Right now?…Okay, see you in a bit." He hangs up and looks at Kate.

"I have to go soon, my brother's on his way over to pick me up."

"Oh." Kate's face drops. She seems really into this guy. I feel kind of bad that Elliot has to go because I hate to see that look on Kate's face.

A few minutes later there's a buzz on the intercom.

Elliot gets to his feet. "Do you guys want to meet my brother?" Elliot asks excitedly.

We all look at each other and nod.

Elliot buzzes his brother into the building and we wait for the knock. When it comes, Elliot opens the door and my jaw drops to the floor. _Holy shit_.

"Guys," Elliot says. "This is my brother, Christian." Christian walks into the door and smiles at Kate and Jose and his eyes go wide when he sees me.

"Miss Steele, what pleasant surprise." He smiles and walks to my side.

"You know each other?" Elliot looks confused.

"Of course, she's my girlfriend," Christian says and wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me close. _Girlfriend! _I could high-five myself right now. I look around and see Kate, Jose and Elliot with wide eyes and I blush. Although when I look a little closer, Jose looks almost shocked and disgusted. _You know how I feel about you, don't be so surprised_.

"Girlfriend?" Kate asks. "When did this happen?"

"This afternoon," Christian says proudly. He kisses my hair and I can't help but smile. Jose stomps down the hall and slams the bathroom making everyone jump.

"Excuse me," I say before unwrapping Christian's arms and follow Jose to the bathroom. I knock on the door. "Jose?" I knock again.

"What do you want?" He's angry.

"Jose, please let me in," I beg. After a moment the lock clicks I walk in, closing the door behind me. "What's wrong?"

"That's kind of a stupid question, don't you think?" he snaps at me.

"Jose, I have told you many times that you're like family to me. You can't be mad at me."

"Really?" He raises his voice. "I can't be mad? Ana, I love you! I could barely stand the idea of you hanging out with Ethan." I stand there in shock. He loves me? Oh no. Jose can't love me. I wipe my hands over my face and within seconds, I'm pinned against the bathroom door, Jose's nose is practically touching mine.

"What are you doing?" I snap in a whisper.

"Ana, please don't do this, you know we should be together." What? Has he totally lost it? Now, I wish Elliot hadn't shown up tonight. I should have told Jose about Christian myself, but would it have gone the same way? I could probably handle it if he left rather then have me pinned to my bathroom, begging to be with him instead of Christian.

I place my hands on his chest. "Jose, no, please." And before I know it, his lips are on mine. _What the hell is going on? _I try to push him off me, but he doesn't budge. I begin to panic and start to flail, but it doesn't do much since he was able to grab my wrists and pin them behind me.

I pull my lips away. "Get off of me!" I yell, hoping the others can hear.

Jose's lips move down my neck and I feel tears in my eyes.

"Jose, please," I whisper.

Suddenly the bathroom door shoots open, sending us forward and we both fall into the bathtub. Jose hits his head and I hit my hip, but I'm thankful to see Christian standing there. He's furious. He looks at me, helps me up and pulls me out, down the hall and to the living room before walking back and dragging Jose back by his shirt.

"What the hell is going on?" Kate yells as Elliot holds on to her.

Christian picks Jose up by his shirt with no effort.

"Touch her again and I'll kill you," he growls and Jose immediately stills, fear in his eyes. But he decides to fight back with what little bravery he has.

"She doesn't belong with you. She'd be better off with me and you know it."

"Jose!" I scold him.

His eyes turn to me. "I know you're thinking it, too, Ana."

"You're delusional." Whoa, did those words really just come out of my mouth? Jose scoffs and Christian just holds on to him, glaring to him furiously.

"Christian…enough bro," Elliot says still hanging on to Kate. After a moment or two, Christian drops Jose and walks over to me, pulling me into his strong arms and cradles me, kissing my hair. When Jose gets to his feet, he looks around at everyone, not sure what to do with himself.

"Get out," Kate growls. Jose looks at her confused. "I said get out!" She struggles in Elliot's arms but he manages to keep her back.

Jose grabs his things and leaves without another word or a glance back at any of us.

"Are you okay?" Christian whispers to me.

I nod, trying to control my breathing.

"Oh my God, Ana, are you alright?" Kate asks as she pulls me into her arms, not caring that Christian was holding me first.

"Yes, Kate, I'm fine." I pull away.

"Of all people, I never would have taken Jose—" I hold my hand up to stop Kate.

"It's over and I would like to be done with it." She nods and we all go quiet. 


	9. Chapter 9

"You didn't have to do that, you know?" I said to Christian. He and Elliot decided to stay to make sure I was okay after what happened with Jose. I wonder where he is right now. _Who cares, Ana? He pretty much tried to rape you. _Either way, he's still my friend and I still care about him.

"Yes I did," Christian says, breaking me from my thoughts. "He hurt you. He hurt what was mine, and that's not okay with me." I don't move from my position. I'm lying on his rock hard chest and he has his arms wrapped around me. I feel safe in his arms.

"Tell me more about you." I don't want to think about Jose and the events of this evening anymore. It's too much stress.

"What would you like to know?"

"Start from the beginning," I say and turn to look up at him. He's staring my bedroom ceiling.

"Well, I was adopted into a very loving family when I was four, graduated from Harvard and opened up my own companies."

"Companies?"

He nods. "I have two companies, Ana. The one you work for and GEH." He doesn't seem very interested so I just decide to think about something else to talk about. All the while I begin to rub my hand on his stomach and slowly move up. When I get closer to the middle of his torso, he grabs my hand and stops me.

"No," he whispers. I frown at him. "I don't like to be touched, Ana."

"Why?"

He gulps. "I have issues with being touched and I'd like to leave it at that."

"Oh, are we keeping secrets now?"

He looks down at me and smirks. "I know I am, but I hope you're not."

What? That's not fair. Why should he get to keep secrets but he's hoping I'm not? I sigh and move my hand back down to his stomach. We lay there in silence until the sky is black outside.

Christian suddenly sits up. "I have to go, baby." _Baby? _

"Why?" I'd be lying if I said I wasn't sad to hear he was leaving. I look down.

He puts his finger underneath my chin and lifts my gaze to his.

"I'll see you Monday?"

I nod and he smiles before kissing me passionately. I cup his cheek with my hand and deepen the kiss. His hand slowly moves down my back and comes to rest on my waist and I moan a little. Suddenly I feel myself falling back down against the mattress and Christian is on top of me. I can feel his rock hard erection against me and I moan again.

"What you do to me, Anastasia," he whispers against my lips. He begins to flex his hips against mine and he groans as he does so. I bring my legs up and wrap them around his waist, pulling him closer. His hand comes back up and cups my breast and begins to knead it while his lips move down to my neck.

"Oh…" God it feels amazing. This man feels amazing.

"Anastasia," he whispers again, pulling away.

"No." I pull him back to me and I begin to kiss him harder.

"Anastasia, if I don't go now, neither of us is leaving this bed."

"That's fine," I breathe.

"No." He pulls away and sits up. "I have to leave. I have to take Elliot home and I have work to do." I exhale deeply, disappointed. I sit up and get to my feet. I walk to my bedroom door.

"Hey," he says catching my hand. I turn to face him. "Believe me, Ana, I would love nothing more than to ravish you in bed right now, but I am far too busy."

"Another girlfriend?" I joke, but I guess he doesn't see it because his face darkens.

"Do you really think so little of me?" he asks impassively. I think I made him mad. _Good job, Ana._

"It wouldn't surprise me. I mean you have girls swooning over you left, right and centre."

Christian wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me closer. "You are the only woman I want, Ana." I hear the sincerity in his voice and my heart is racing. I lean up on my toes and kiss him chastely.

Elliot is at the front door with Kate. He opens the door and both men walk out.

"Laters, baby," Elliot says to Kate, winking at her and leaves.

"Goodnight, Ana," Christian whispers to me and kisses me. Kate closes the door and we both giggle to ourselves.

I woke up to a knock on my door at ten o'clock in the morning. It's Saturday, I should be allowed to sleep in.

"Go away," I groan and pull my blanket over my head.

"Ana, wake up! Ethan's here," Kate says from the other side of the door. _Ethan? _I jump out of bed, open my bedroom door to see Ethan standing behind Kate with a smile on his face.

"Good morning, Steele," Ethan says.

I rub my eyes. "Hey Ethan."

"You up for hanging out today?" he asks hopefully. He's wearing such a big smile on his face and it's make it hard to say no.

"Of course. Is Kate coming with us?" I turn to look at her.

She looks between me and Ethan and smirks. "Nah, I might call Elliot over." She winks at me.

I raise my eyebrows.

"Who's Elliot?" Ethan asks confused.

"Kate's new squeeze," I joke and she sticks her tongue out at me.

"Oh jeez, TMI," Ethan groans and I laugh.

"Let me get changed and I'll be right out." I close my door and change.

When I come out, I'm wearing an indigo blue wrap sweater, my favorite black jeans and Converse sneakers. My hair is in its regular brown veil down to my breasts. Ethan is sitting on the couch talking to Kate and immediately smiles when I come around the corner.

"You didn't have to get all dressed up for me," Ethan jokes.

I blush.

"So what are we doing, Ethan?"

"I thought we'd go out for breakfast and take you to see Ray." He smiles proudly.

"Ray's in town?" I ask excited. I haven't seen Ray since my graduation. It would be great to see him again. "What's he doing in Seattle?"

"I don't know. I was driving around the other day and saw him crossing the street. He's around until tomorrow, so I thought you'd want to see him."

"Oh, Ethan that sounds wonderful. Thank you!" I jump into his arms and hug him hard.

"So Kate tells me that Jose made a pass at you yesterday?"

I flush at the memory. I was really hoping Jose wouldn't come up in conversation. I know how much Ethan and Jose dislike each other, which is why I wanted to avoid the subject.

"You could say that," I mutter.

"What do you mean?" His eyes are focused on the road, but his attention is on me. He's concerned.

I exhale deeply. "You can say he tried to…rape me." _I'm not sure if saying 'rape' is going too far with Ethan._

The car comes to a complete stop and thank goodness for my seatbelt, otherwise I'd have gone through the windshield. Ethan is glaring at me, ignoring the cars honking behind us.

"Excuse me?" He's nearly shouting.

"Ethan, please—"

"No! You're my sister's best friend and a good friend of mine, Ana. Where is he?" _Oh no._

"I don't know, he might have gone home."

He visibly relaxes a little. "Good." He puts the car in motion again.

After a few minutes of silence, Ethan finally talks again.

"What was that idiot thinking?" he snaps.

We pull up outside Beth's Café and Ethan walks around and opens my door for me. I thank him with a warm smile and he returns it. Ethan is such a sweetheart; I wish a lot more people were like him. But then again if that ever happened Ethan wouldn't have his signature smirk and cocked eyebrow. He wouldn't be his own person and that's what I love about him.

Ethan picks a booth and orders each of us a glass of orange juice. It smells amazing in here, my mouth is instantly watery. We look over the menu until a waitress comes over with her notepad and pen. She doesn't look all that happy today.

"Um," Ethan looks down at the menu. "I'd like a Full House omelet, please."

The waitress looks between us confused but doesn't say anything.

"And you?" she asks me and I look to Ethan.

"We're splitting it," he says quickly. The waitress looks between the two of us, smirks and walks away.

"Ugh, I think I've eaten enough to last me until next month," I groan. My stomach is overstuffed with that giant omelet Ethan and I shared. It was almost bigger than the plate! It was delicious, all full of ham, mushrooms and cheese. Ethan's rubbing his stomach and exhales deeply.

I laugh.

He looks at me from the corner of his eye. "What's so funny, Steele?" he asks.

"You."

"Why am I funny?"

"Because you can normally eat servings bigger than what we just had, and here you are looking like you're ready to pass out." I laugh.

"Hey, they're food has enough in it to fill you up quicker than half the crap I eat. But I can't deny that it's delicious." He smiles. "So, are you ready to go and see Ray?" Ethan asks after a few minutes of deafening silence.

I nod like a lunatic. I can't wait to see Ray!

Ethan knocks on the door of my dad's motel room. When he opens it, he looks shocked and happy at the same time. He still looks the same. Honestly, this man doesn't age at all.

"Hey, Annie," Ray says before pulling me into a hug.

"Hi, dad!" I can't deny my happiness.

"Ethan," Ray says with a smile and they shake. "Come on in." He moves out of the way for Ethan and I to step inside and he closes the door. Ray's room is pretty clean, almost like he's only been here a few minutes.

"So what are you kids up to?" Ray asks.

"Not much, touring the city and wanted to know if Ana wanted to come and see you." Ethan turns to me and smiles kindly and I blush.

"Well that was very thoughtful of you, Ethan." Ray looks at me. "What's going on with you, kiddo?"

"Nothing really," I say.

"Ana, got a new boyfriend," Ethan says. Rays eyebrows shoot up and my eyes go wide with horror. _Damn you, Kavanagh's and your big mouths!_

"Boyfriend, huh?" Ray asks calmly.

"Yeah," I say quickly and then turn to Ethan. "How did you know?"

"Kate." _Of course_. I look back at Ray.

"I'm sorry, I wanted to be sure it was serious first before I said anything." I shrug apologetically.

"It's alright, Annie. No harm done." He smiles and I immediately relax. "So who is it?"

"Who's who?" I ask dumbly.

"Don't pretend you don't know. The boyfriend. Who is the boyfriend?"

I look at Ethan and he's look at me but staying silent. _Oh, now you choose to be quiet_. I sigh.

"Christian Grey." Ray's eyes go wide with shock. I don't think I have ever seen him like this before. _Oh dear_.

"Christian Grey, as in the same Christian Grey that runs Grey Publishing and Grey Enterprises Holdings?" I nod. "May I also remind you that he's your boss?"

"Dad, I know. Believe me; I'm still shocked about this whole thing myself."

"How did you manage this?" he asks seriously. Does he not approve? And I remind myself that I may not have a whole shitload of experience in serious, romantic relationships but I'm not completely naïve to the idea of it all.

I flush. "Well, we met, he asked me out for dinner and then he asked me to be his girlfriend." I shrug unsurely. I'm not sure what else to say, I just gave him the whole thing in a five second summarization.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Ray asks me and Ethan looks at me. I look between the both of them.

"Yes dad, I'm sure."

He nods. "Well alright then. Tell me what's been going on." And just like that, the topic has changed and Ethan and I tell Ray about our lives in Seattle and about work and everything.


	10. Chapter 10

It was a rainy Monday and I couldn't help but dwell on how fast the weekend went by. But I did have fun seeing Ray and Ethan and seeing Mr. and Mrs. Kavanagh for dinner on Sunday. They are the nicest parents I have ever met.

I get to my desk and boot up my computer. I look down to see three manuscripts sitting there with a note attached to it. It's from Jack.

_Ana,_

_I need the first chapters of these done before noon._

_Jack_

I check my watch and see that I have four hours to get them done, so I get to work quickly. All the while I think about Friday evening and what happened with Jose. He has never acted like that towards a guy I've gotten close to, what makes Christian any different? And then there's Ethan. He sold me out to Ray and he knows how he feels about hearing about my love life from someone else. Speaking of which, what was Ray doing in Seattle? He rarely ever travels unless he has a good reason. I should have asked.

I finish the manuscripts by eleven-thirty, submit them to Jack and make my way to the kitchen for some tea. I look through the cupboards for a good kind, but they only have apple cinnamon. I give up and head back to my desk.

"Ana," Jack calls me, appearing out of nowhere.

"Yes?" He's looking through the manuscripts with a big smile on his face.

"Honestly, how do you do that?"

"Do what?" I ask confused.

"This." He points to my submitted chapters. "You went through the first chapters on all three manuscripts, each having about twenty to twenty-five pages, and written full reports. You're amazing," he says, his smile growing bigger. I don't think I have ever seen someone quite so happy before in my life.

"Well, it was nothing, really." I blush.

"No Ana, this is not nothing. This is incredible."

"Jack, it was only the first chapters of three scripts. It's not a big deal."

"But it's the time you got them done in. My last few PA's took at least two hours to do one." He sighs. He moves to lean on my desk, getting a little too close. _Whoa there, back up a little, please_.

"What are you doing tonight?" he asks me casually.

_Huh?_

"Um…" _Think of something, quick! _"Nothing, why?" _Good job._

"You want have a quick drink with me after work?"

"Oh wow, um…" Before I can answer, my phone rings. _Saved by the bell! _I answer it quickly.

"Grey Publishing, Anastasia—"

"My office now," Christian growls into the phone and hangs up. I slowly put the phone back on its hook and look at Jack with a bit of shock. _Oh shit, what did I do? _

"What's wrong?" Jack asks. I shake my head and get to my feet.

"We'll pick this up later, Jack." I quickly walk to the elevator and press for the twenty-fifth floor. I anxiously watch each floor number light up. The closer I get the more I shake. Oh God, what is going on? I haven't done anything to make him mad.

The elevator dings when it gets to my destination and I slowly step out and head down the hallway towards Christian's office. When I get there, Taylor is standing there with a blank look on his face. He doesn't look at me, but just stares straight ahead. _Creepy_. I slowly open the door and step into Christian's office. I look around and see him standing at the window with his back to me.

"Close the door," he says dryly. I walk in, close the door and just stand there in silence. When he turns around his eyes are blazing.

"What's this about?" My entire body is shaking and I'm sure he heard it in my voice.

"Where were you Saturday?" he asks, strolling towards me.

"Why?"

He glares at me but his face remains impassive. "Because I went by your apartment at one to see if you wanted to have lunch since my meetings were cancelled. Kate told me you were out with her brother."

"I was."

"I don't like sharing what's mine, Anastasia." Our eyes lock and we gaze at each other in silence. His eyes are enough to liquidate everything and anything inside me. I try to fight to look away but my body betrays me and I am forced to look into molten gray.

I finally grow enough courage to say, "I am your girlfriend, not a possession, Christian." Oh, his name is such a pleasant taste in my mouth. And before I know it, he walks around his desk and lunges at me, pinning me to the wall. My breathing picks up and I'm not sure what to do.

"Christian, what are you doing?"

"As your girlfriend it is my job to protect you and look after you the best way I know how," he growls. _What are we married now? _

"Your job is also to trust me," I snap, my courage coming back all at once. I am not going to let his beauty sidetrack me.

"I do trust you," he says. "It's them I don't trust."

"Well like it or not, Christian, but Ethan has been my friend for years and I trust him dearly." I snap again. Christian's eyes go wide and I'm not sure what he's thinking, but I can see he's not pleased.

"How do I know he's not like that other boy?"

I pause for a minute. I never told him or Kate about my past relationship with Ethan. No one who's ever seen Ethan and I together could understand why we're so close. Ethan's been very protective of me for a while and tries to see me as often as he can because—

"Anastasia!" Christian calls. I shake my head.

"What?"

"Answer my question. How can I be sure that Kavanagh is not like the other one?" He's standing there impatiently.

"I…I don't know." I look down at my feet and my heart sinks. I don't want to keep secrets from Christian, but this one may have to be kept in the vault. At least until I get to know him better.

"That's not exactly helping, Ana." His voice is softer now and I'm briefly put at ease. My breathing returns to normal and I look into his eyes again. They've softened as well. _Thank goodness. _And before I have a chance to see what happens next, Christian swoops down and catches my lips with his in a deep, passionate kiss. Finally, something to take the edge off the current situation. I push my lips against his and he groans loudly. He grabs my wrists in one hand and holds them behind my back while his other hand moves down to my hip. His hips move against mine and I feel his erection growing in his pants and I moan a little.

"Feel me, baby," he whispers against my lips. And before I know it, he releases my hands and picks me up, sitting me down on top of his desk. He pushes me down so my back rests against it and he climbs up on top of me. My fingers curl into his soft, copper hair and hold him close to me as his tongue explores my mouth. His lips move down my neck, trailing kisses down to my clavicle and I moan again.

"What are you doing to me, Ana?"

Considering the current situation, I think now would be a good time to mentally pat myself on the back for not wearing tights today. Christian's hand moves up my leg, up my thigh and begins to rub my throbbing bundle of nerves. I moan and I can feel how damp I am through the material.

"Christ, Ana, you're soaking for me," he growls before his lips attack mine again. Then something immediately comes to mind and I pull my lips from his. Christian stops and stares at me. "What is it?"

"Where did you Friday night and why haven't I seen you all weekend?" I ask shyly. Christian moves off the desk and stands in front of me. I sit up and look at him.

"I told you I had work to do and I had to get Elliot home."

"That was Friday," I remind him.

"And?" The exasperation isn't lost in his voice.

"You said you came by on Saturday and Kate answered the door. Kate didn't tell me." He looks at me odd. "Kate would tell me if she found a spider in the shower, let alone someone coming to the door for me."

Christian looks around the office looking very uncomfortable. He runs a hand through his hair and begins pacing.

"I told you I had a meeting," he says and I nod. "I did, but the person I was meeting with cancelled."

"Was this person a woman?"

He stays silent.

"Christian!"

"Yes, the other person was a woman." I immediately feel a stab of pain in my stomach. A stab of betrayal. He lied to me and like always, I fell for it. I jump to my feet and head for the door.

"No, Ana," he stops me by grabbing my wrist and I rip it away.

"You lied to me," I spit at him.

He sighs heavily. "Not exactly, no."

"What do you mean not exactly? You said you had a meeting, which you confirmed, but I guess my joke about it being with another girlfriend turned out to be true."

"The other woman isn't exactly my girlfriend," he says quietly. He just stands there and stares at me. "She's my submissive."

I feel my eyes go wide with shock. "I'm sorry, what?"

"My submissive."

"A submissive as in a sex slave?"

He rolls his eyes at me. He tucks his hands into his pockets and rocks on his heels. Clearly this isn't like him. He doesn't seem like the type of guy to look as awkward as he does.

"Miranda isn't a sex slave, Ana."

_Miranda? _"Oh really?"

"She's someone who gets pleasure from pain, as do I." He flushes. "I've never had to explain myself to anyone before."

I ignore the last part. "Is that what you wanted me for, Christian? You wanted me as your new submissive?" He's shocked. "Did you take off Friday night to tell her you found someone else to submit for you?" I feel bad for snapping at him like this, but honestly, who in the right mind would be okay with this?

"That's how I felt in the beginning, Ana, but when I saw the way that dick treated you, I knew that I could have lost you. We may not have known each other for that long, but you're too important to me."

"So you're going to be with me, but keep her on the side." I assume.

"No," he says in disgust. "She cancelled because she knew I didn't need her anymore. I need you, Ana. This is all so new to me and I'm not letting it go."

I melt at his words. How could something so strange and disgusting sound so right and romantic? My goodness, am I just as messed up as this whole thing with this man?

"Don't leave me," he whispers and I think I see tears forming in his eyes. I reach over and take his hands in mine and kiss them with reassurance.

"I'm not going anywhere." He smiles and pulls me in for a chaste kiss. He wraps his arms around me, caging me in safety and his warmth. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else

* * *

**A/N: **I will be leaving this story for now. I will be picking it back up eventually from Christian's POV. Thank you everyone for the reviews, I appreciate the feedback and everything. :)


	11. Author's Note

I am currently working on _Fifty Shades of Confessions_, the sequel from Christian's POV. I should have chapters one and two up tonight. There may be more, depending on the time.

Once again, thank you for all the great reviews. You are all so great. :)


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